ttjtmomma Posted March 15, 2012 #1 Share Posted March 15, 2012 This my first cruise. We are doing it on a budget. Money is a factor or we would not be waiting until June of 2013 to sail and this would not be our first. What we are planning is a Princess crusietour. Is there usually a price drop after the launch fares or is it better to book rightaway to get the best rates? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leavingocalaagain Posted March 15, 2012 #2 Share Posted March 15, 2012 Not an easy answer. Sometimes the intro prices are best,and room selection is definitely the best. However, at some point there will be sale prices that are better if bookings are slower than expected. If you book early, and later find a better price for an equivalent room, you can cancel and re-book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul929207 Posted March 15, 2012 #3 Share Posted March 15, 2012 Welcome to Cruise Critic. Price drops and increases will be driven by sales. If a cruise is selling well prices will likely go up. Poor sales often lead to lower prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwcsr Posted March 15, 2012 #4 Share Posted March 15, 2012 If the price drops after you've booked, you don't have to rebook. Just ask for the new fare and you'll get it. We did this on a cruise we are taking later this year and saved over $300 each. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toddy709 Posted March 16, 2012 #5 Share Posted March 16, 2012 If the price drops after you've booked, you don't have to rebook. Just ask for the new fare and you'll get it. We did this on a cruise we are taking later this year and saved over $300 each. As long as it is BEFORE final payment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coo359a2 Posted March 16, 2012 #6 Share Posted March 16, 2012 If you are planning this to be an Alaskan cruise tour, remember the land add on tour could sell out quicker than the actual cruise. When we went in 2010, the cruise tour sold out way before the cruise did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttjtmomma Posted March 16, 2012 Author #7 Share Posted March 16, 2012 Is there a limit on how may times you can get the rate dropped and is there a fee for this? Thank you for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttjtmomma Posted March 16, 2012 Author #8 Share Posted March 16, 2012 We had heard this that is why we were looking to book very soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coo359a2 Posted March 16, 2012 #9 Share Posted March 16, 2012 I booked the day the cruisetours opened as there were 6 of us and it had to be on a certain date. We also wanted specific cabin numbers. I don't believe the pricing ever went down. The only thing we changed was to have our TA cancel the Natural History Tour at Denali so that amount was deducted from our cruise tour total. We made reservations directly with the Park Service for their Wilderness Tour. Princess and most TAs do not charge you for refaring your cruise. There could be some TAs that would charge so you should ask up front if they charge for any changes or cancellations to your booking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherylandtk Posted March 16, 2012 #10 Share Posted March 16, 2012 Since OP is booking a cruisetour, we should mention that price drops on cruisetours are much more infrequent than cruise-only price drops. And if the cruise-only price drops, that has no bearing on whether the cruisetour price will also drop. They are different types of bookings and different yield management models. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttjtmomma Posted March 16, 2012 Author #11 Share Posted March 16, 2012 Welcome to Cruise Critic. Price drops and increases will be driven by sales. If a cruise is selling well prices will likely go up. Poor sales often lead to lower prices. Thank you everyone for all your help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
34TigerLily Posted March 16, 2012 #12 Share Posted March 16, 2012 Is there a limit on how may times you can get the rate dropped and is there a fee for this? Thank you for your help. No limit. No fee. :):) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddingtonbear Posted March 17, 2012 #13 Share Posted March 17, 2012 The new cabin categories post may 2013 are on the Princess website now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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